Matthew 56
Chapter 13: Jesus and the parables
This gets complicated (and it’s supposed to)
Matthew 13:10–17 (NLT)
10 His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”
11 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.
12 To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.
13 That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.
14 This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend.
15 For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’
16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.
17 I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.
So even for us to understand this chapter we are going to have to bounce around a bit, Jesus has just gone through a mess with the Pharisees and now starts to speak in parables, and His disciples don’t understand why, so we start at Vs 10 to get a better understanding of why Jesus speaks in parables.
Definition(Parable): usually short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle
What is a Parable??
The parables of Jesus make up a crucial part of the Bible. Jesus had the wisdom to simplify the profound spiritual truths He needed to share with humanity in the form of relatable stories that are easy to understand. A parable is a tale about a simple, common subject to illustrate a deeper, valuable moral lesson. The source definition of the word “parable” means a placement side by side for the purpose of comparison.
To sum it up, He made it simpler for His audience to understand! And no matter how simple you make, how easy it is, or how far you break it down, some will never get it!
The question is asked!
10 His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”
11 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.
· His disciples, in my opinion, are being a little selfish
· And some of you don’t even see it
· They are asking because they think this is too easy
o We already get this basic stuff, let's break it down
o Let’s dig deep
· And Jesus just laid it out, "some folks need it a little simpler”!
o Some of us God reveals things to, and for others, it takes more time to grasp it
o I am one of those people
o I have to study and think and sometimes you have to make it simple for me
o On my desktop is a copy of a children’s bible
There are 2 reasons Jesus used Parables
1. to reveal more
2. to also conceal it
1. To reveal!
I need more!!
12 To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.
· So, God will use the parable to either soften or harden your heart
· For some, He uses them to reveal more of Himself and to give us a deeper understanding
· And the more we know the more we will receive
· The more we learn the more we will want to learn
· We will start to become receptive to change
· Receptive to that fact that we are not perfect and that we can learn from the smallest and most insignificant things, no matter how simple they may be
· We start to understand that God's word is ever-living and every time it is uttered, we can learn from it
· Hence the “not being fed” is a you issue, not a content issue!
2. To conceal
Some people will never get it!
13 That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.
· Sometimes the more you talk to someone the less they get
· And God uses parables to weed out the hard-hearted people
· We have all come across that one person that no matter how hard you try, they just don’t get it!
· And God is saying here not all people will get or choose to receive the Gospel
· And we have to come to terms with that
· Not all people will be saved
· Period
· So, God uses parables to further confuse the confused and frustrated!
And we can’t blame God for the people who never choose to follow!
14 This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend.
15 For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’
· It is not the harsh judgment of God that prevents the people from understanding Jesus’ parables.
· Rather, it is their own hard-heartedness.
· The blame for not understanding lands squarely on the hearer
o because their heart has become calloused; … and they have closed their eyes.
o Had they chosen otherwise they might have seen with their eyes, heard with their ears, understood with their hearts, and turned.
o The word turned could equally well be translated repented.
o And had the people repented, God would have healed them.
o So, Jesus spoke in parables because parables drove hard-hearted people away and drew open-hearted people near.[1]
· I have seen people that sit in a church for decades and never get it
· They are stiff-necked and hard-hearted
· They complain
· They want black and white rules to “govern” over God's people!
· They simply never get the humble message of Love and forgiveness that Jesus has taught
· And it’s sad to watch knowing that there is nothing you can do!
But for the ones who get it!
16 “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.
17 I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it."
· What a privilege the Disciples had in being with Jesus
o To hear His teaching and to be a part of the story of God unfolding, to walk with Jesus “Emanuel”
· But we have the same choice the crowd and the disciples had
o To choose to hear, to choose to see, to choose to learn
o God has given us the amazing and awesome privilege of free will
o We can choose the narrow or wide path
o We can choose to listen and learn from Jesus and the body
o But it is a choice we all have to make!
· What will you choose?
o Fan
o Or follower
o The sidelines
o Or be in the game
o You can sit in those chairs for the rest of your life and never truly get what Jesus has to offer
[1]Hahn, R. L. (2007). Matthew: a commentary for Bible students(p. 171). Indianapolis, IN: Wesleyan Publishing House.
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